is still alive in the Balkans: from this tradition, similarly as in Japanese tradition, many terms came which are not only terminology of discursive communication but the terms are metaphors covering a broad scale of emotions, meanings and associations.

Transforming metaphoric language of the Balkans into discursive Western terms is a kind of "culturecide" or killing of what Dante Alighieri used to name: "Big Soul of the People".

pijaca - farmer's marketThe Serbian word "market" ("pijaca" comes from Italian language: "piaza").In late spring peasants bring out their first crops from their gardens to sell them at the farmer's markets.

Зелени венац / Zeleni Venacis the name of a well-known market place in Belgrade. It sells all kinds of vegetables, fruits, cheese, eggs etc.

"Preobraženje" is not an exclusive Christian term related to the church. Quite contrary: the term was adopted by the Orthodox Church from a much older pagan celebration.In "Serbian People Calendar" -- a calendar based in tradition older than Christian habits is a note on 19th August like that:

PREOBRAŽENJE (Alteration day):"the alteration of woods and waters-- the leaves get the first yellow color and water become cold" (*)*Dimitar AnakievAt the Tombstone, Red Moon Press, 2002

The Orthodox Church has celebrated this day since 7th century, the Catholic church since the 15th century.

The people of Balkans -- particularly true for Serbian and Bulgarian population-- have a very alive pagan tradition which has never been totally occupied by Christian (or any other monotheist) churches.It is the very specific of the Balkans, in this case of Serbian People Calendar terminology. This facts also explains the specific of haiku poetry of the Balkans --much closer in many aspects to Japanese expression then to Western haiku poetry.If possible I would like to keep connected with this Big Soul of the People, not with the ideology of Christianity-- which is also possible to be used but just as a secondary term.

A Big Soul of the Peopleis still alive in the Balkans: from this tradition, similarly as in Japanese tradition, many terms came which are not only terminology of discursive communication but the terms are metaphors covering a broad scale of emotions, meanings and associations.Transforming metaphoric language of the Balkans into discursive Western terms is a kind of "culturecide" or killing of what Dante Alighieri used to name: "Big Soul of the People".

Kigo "putnik" ("traveler") is a summer topic.The poem has one more seasonal kigo: "dusty hands,"but here it represents a universal symbol: the hands are dusty, they should be washed, cleaned for the reception of the guest. The poet uses the phrases from folk language giving this haiku very specific poetic character, which especially refers to the phrase putnik namernik, a special cultural stereotype very important in our culture, bearing a mythological dimension. This mythological dimension is well described on the Internet:

People did not travel much in olden times, but when they started to visit distant places, a guest was no more a rare phenomenon, and hospitality has remained a custom up to the present times. A "putnk namernik" was considered a divine being.A host would try to please him so as to gain his affection as well as to ingratiate himself with him. Guests were greeted and entertained as best as possible, because a host expected to gain God's protection by the gentleness of a bypassing traveler.A traveler could cast a spell on the house by his mean look, too. That mean look should be induced mercy in and turned away; a guest had to be served with best food and drink and his every wish had to be fulfilled.The myth about a divine guest has become a habit of hospitality as an obligation, while the fear that a traveler could cast a spell on the house by his mean look no more exists. It would help to serve him wine from a colored bottle. Apart from a glass of water and some preserve, it's also good to offer him an overnight stay and hospitality and not to expect to get anything in return.Have a nice trip and come back, visit us again if the road brings you our way!

Because of the mythological context of this poem, I think that it is untranslatable into English, that is, the words can be translated, but they do not transfer the same context, mythology and poetic sensibility. There are walls among cultures, so in order for someone from another culture to understand this poem, not only to feel its poetic, the translator would have to explain the whole above text in a footnote.

The phrase "putnik namernik" is a picture, a metaphor, it comes from the "Big Soul of the People", it is an archaic expression but broadly used still today. There is a whole mythology around and there is a magic connotation to this "mythological creature".

The biggest problem is literal (and literary) translation. The phrase uses just two words:

1. putnik (traveler)2. namernik

"Namernik" is a archaic grammatical construction which is not easy to be transformed into a single modern Serbian word. The term comes from the root "namera" which means "intention".But here the suffix "-ik" is not grammatically correct, is a kind of "poetic violence of the grammar".In the tradition of Serbian People and the use of language, such a kind of "poetic violence" over the language rules is quite usual. Perhaps such kind of phrasing was common before the codification of grammar done in 19. century. But today it sounds strange.

The suffix "-ik" can be compared with English "-er" (like in "travel-er"), so it means a PERSONIFICATION OF A TERM WITHOUT REAL MEANING.

Путник намерник.О чакшире дед отрепрашњаве руке.

from somewhere remotea traveler, and grandpawipes his hand on his pants(Tr. with support of Jim Kacian)

Before all it is a kind of INTERPRETATION from the viewpoint of "grandpa": so, it describes a psychology of a a possible host IF a "traveller intentioner" visits his home. So, this interpretation is built around the psychology of the host-- that is ONE important aspect but just a small piece of the PICTURE coming with TRAVELLER INTENTIONER.

Many problems are around this interpretation:

-change of main subject: traveler and guest are not the same-change of possible action (it is not obvious that "traveler intentioner" will become a guest.Often a "travellers intentioners" stops by the fence just for asking for a glass of water, then they continue their way, or stopping just for asking for a direction... all these aspects of action are even more possible than becoming a real guest)

-mythology of "traveller intentioner" is lost-magic connotation is lost-a new not-existing word is added: "unexpected" (this word creates interpretation)-sense of distance is lost (dimension of endless ways behind the "traveler intentioner")-sense of time is changed: feeling of ancientness become just psychological moment of present time

Thinking as poets we must ask ourselves before translating this poem the common questions:what is the essence of this poem?Or Why is this poem important?Or What makes this poem universal behind all cultural and linguistic differences?

The answer is:The drama of a common man meeting a mythological creature.For facing this drama people of ancient time used magic. But this ancient dramatic moment is completely lost with a modern psychological interpretation.So, the first goal of a translator is crating of mythological dimension of the traveler. Only in this point we can catch the universal moment because "traveler intentioner" is aSYMBOL of THE BIG, UNKNOWN WORLD meeting "normal", "small", human being.For crating this sense we have only two universal tools here:

-sense of distance (behind the traveler)-sense of ancientness

All other aspects are very specific and can be added only in footnotes like an mythological explanation but cannot be real unique poetic tools.So, to create these two aspects I translated a poem in 4 lines.

Perhaps with a hard study of English mythology written around the term "traveler" we can find some phrase creating some mythological dimension. But for now we only have a sense of distance and a sense of ancientness to point at this aspect.

Dimitar Anakiev

***************************** Worldwide use

During a long pilgrimage to 88 temples in Shikoku, pilgrims are regarded as an incarnation of Kobo Daishi himself, and are treated to food and shelter.They are called "Kobo san".Pilgrimage in Shikoku (henro)

Serbiaofficially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: Република Србија, Republika Srbija), is a country located at the crossroads of Central- and Southeastern Europe, covering the southern part of the Pannonian Plain and central part of the Balkans.

quoteIt was St. Sava who introduced the ritual of the baptismal Slava, or Patron Saint's Day, into practice on a liturgical basis. Since the time of St. Sava, this ritual and its accompanying customs gradually assumed the form it has today.

Consecrating the WaterIn some parts of the country, as in Vojvodina, Belgrade and elsewhere, the custom is for the priest to go to the homes of the celebrants before the day of the Slava itself and to bless the water. The housewife places before the household icon, a candle, a censer and incense and lights the thurible. The priest then blesses the water which the housewife will use to knead the flour for the Slave cake.

For that occasion it is necessary to prepare the following: a censer, a flame (or a briquette made of special coal), a candlestick and incense, as well as a posy of sweet basil and a vessel of clear water. All this has to be on a table facing the icon of the relevant Slava which hangs on the eastern wall of the room.The housewife treats the consecrated water as something sacred. She handles it with care and puts it in a specific place.

Then, on the eve of the Slava, when she has completed all the preparations for the following day, she uses this water and takes flour to knead the dough for the Slava cake, adding the requisite amount of salt and yeast. In some regions the Slava begins already on the prior evening with a supper, because liturgically regarded, that is already a new day, that is, the Slava day and vespers and the wake are held for the next day. Nevertheless, it is rare for the Slava cake to be cut at that time as this is done on the very day of the Slava.

Going to ChurchOn the morning of the slava, the cake, a wheat cereal dish, and red wine are carried to the church. In the church, the joint consecration of the wheat dish and blessing of the bread and wine is performed and then the priest pours wine over each dish of wheat cereal and cuts each cake separately. At this time, the celebrant, before the commencement of the holy liturgy, offers a list of the living and deceased members of the family for the purpose of having their names mentioned and the wafers placed on the oblation table - for the good health of the living and the peace of the soul of the deceased.

quoteThe slava (Serbian Cyrillic: слава),also called krsna slava (крсна слава) and krsno ime (крсно име, literally "christened name" in Serbian), is the Serbian Orthodox tradition of the ritual celebration, veneration, and observance of a family's own patron saint. The family celebrates the slava annually on the patron saint's feast day.

Every Orthodox family in Serbia has one patron saint. Each family celebrates the feast day of their saint with a unique Serbian Orthodox religious tradition, Krsna Slava or Thanksgiving, on the day when their ancestors were baptized (Serbians accepted Christianity by families and whole tribes). This same saint is the family's saint from generation to generation through the centuries.Sveti Nikola (St. Nicholas) is the patron saint for so many families that there is a Serbian saying for St. Nicholas Day, 6 or 19 December,"Half of Serbia is celebrating their Slava today,and the other half is going to a Slava."It is a very important day for Serbian Orthodox.